


Karaoke Night

by MagpieWords



Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types, The Avengers - Ambiguous Fandom
Genre: Alcohol, Alternate Universe - Always a Different Sex, Alternate Universe - Gender Changes, F/F, Female Bruce Banner, Female Bucky Barnes, Female Clint Barton, Female Sam Wilson, Female Steve Rogers, Female Tony Stark, It's a songfic if you squint, Karaoke, Kissing in the Rain, Love Confessions, Shut Up Kiss, Slice of Life, Team Bonding, everyone is dfab and cis because i'm cliche and boring
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-27
Updated: 2018-02-27
Packaged: 2019-03-24 19:52:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,995
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13818273
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MagpieWords/pseuds/MagpieWords
Summary: Toni didn't want to join for 'team bonding' or whatever, but she can ignore her anger with their captain for one night. At least, she thinks she can, until Stephanie opens her mouth.-Fighting to friends to loversveryquickly.





	Karaoke Night

**Author's Note:**

> Jumping on the 2018 CapIM Alphabet Challenge! I got K and immediately wanted to do this karaoke idea I've had bouncing around in my head for a while.

They had been planning this for weeks, so as much as Toni wanted to bail, she wouldn’t. This night had been scheduled so far in advance, it should have been at a wedding venue. Instead, the Avengers were making their way to a karaoke bar between 8th and Broadway.

After all, Toni was responsible for some of the scheduling conflicts. Even though she wasn’t CEO, Stark Industries still occupied most of her time. Romanoff was also to blame; the last time everyone had been free, she’d been called away on an emergency mission. It was strange how world class engineering and world class spying were so similar. And the time before that, Stephanie had been the one on a mission. Before that, Claire was concussed from a battle. The time before that, Toni had a breakthrough in the lab that nothing short of another alien invasion would pull her away from.

She was tempted to pull that excuse again, but they survived two battles this week. No one was in the hospital and karaoke night was finally going to happen, so everyone was in high spirits. Well, everyone but her and the Captain.

Toni sighed and uncrossed her arms, stuffing her firsts in her jacket pockets with a little more force than necessary. She was mad at Steph, but she wasn’t mad at her team. She wasn’t going to ruin this. The sigh earned a raised brow from Dr. Banner, who dropped her pace to match with Toni’s.

“That’s the third time you’ve sighed in as many blocks.” She said.

“Walking is stupid.”

“Agree to disagree, but that’s not why you’re upset.” Bria leaned in just enough to bump shoulders with her, “You two really should talk.”

“I tried that.”

“You tried yelling at her.”

“She!” Toni shouted, before dropping her voice to a stage whisper, “she yelled at me first.”

Now Briana was sighing. They were dragging at the tail end of the group, the front portion featuring Sam and Natasha had already reached the entrance to the bar half a block up. They hadn’t made a reservation – since they had to cancel every previous one – but there was no wait time for Earth’s Mightiest Heroes to get in. Especially when Sam put down her Stark credit card.

“Tonight is about having fun. Try to do that instead of killing each other.”

“I wont kill her, Bri,” Toni rolled her eyes so hard Bria was certain they phased into another dimension for a second, “Besides, I probably couldn’t if I wanted to. She’s so damn perfect with her muscles, and her ‘we need a plan, Toni’ bullshit, and her stupid teamwork – “

Briana threw up her hands, frustrated but not green around the edges. She quickened her pace, leaving Toni alone to stand outside the door to the karaoke bar. The door which was held open by Stephanie Rogers.

The two women stared at each other for a moment, heated but not quite ready to strike. Until Steph opened her mouth. “Teamwork isn’t stupid.”

Toni’s glare turned sharp and she stormed into the bar. She didn’t even see Becca leaning against the wall just inside the door, her metal arm reflecting the neon lights. “Toni’s right, Stephie, you’re a fuckin’ idiot.”

“Are you on my side or hers?” The captain snarled as she let the door close.

“The fact that you think there are sides just proves my point.” But Becca’s patience was already worn thin with the two team leaders.

Without a reservation, despite their fame, they couldn’t get a private room for another hour. The main stage was open while they waited, and the team had gathered around a large, half-circle booth near the back of the room. As the first to arrive, Natasha and Sam were squished in the middle, with Claire and Briana on their respective sides. Becca took the last seat on the edge, leaving Steph to either sit next to Toni, or pull up a chair. Toni was at the bar, but the choice was clear. It wasn’t hard to find an extra chair when Captain America asked an innocent onlooker, “can I borrow this?”

When Toni returned, she actually had a tray of drinks. Shots, cocktails, an order for each member of the team, except for Steph. “Sorry Cap,” she said without making eye contact, “I didn’t have a plan for what you wanted, so I decided to do nothing.”

“Toni, that’s not what – “

“I can’t hear you over the sound of these shots!” She cheered with Barton before downing the clear liquid in one of the tiny glasses on the tray. She reached for another, downing it without a partner, before taking a larger glass filled with something amber.

The next half hour was drowned out by more drinking and music. Natasha had put her name in as soon as they arrived, delivering what was probably the best rendition of any Beatles song performed at karaoke. When Toni’s name was called, she nearly stumbled as she stood. Without thinking, Steph reached out to catch her, hand resting on her hip. Toni froze and they stared at each other again, both eyes wide this time in a moment that seemed to last forever. It felt like the entire world was holding its’ breath, but Toni knew better than to exaggerate like that. It was just the remaining members at the table, staring in a frozen moment. Even Claire, at the bar for a second round, was stopping to watch.

“I…” Toni started. Her normally cool composure fractured into something that stuttered and twitched and she hated every infinite second of it. She reached for her whiskey glass without thinking. Steph’s hand covered hers on its way there and now they had two points of contact. Two points that felt like fire and ice all at once and Toni wondered if something was wrong with the reactor because she couldn’t breath.

Until Steph opened her mouth. “I think you’ve had enough.”

Time ramped up, overcorrecting the way everything had slowed in that moment between songs. Toni jerked back from Steph’s touch, stumbling for a moment but standing tall on her heels. “You don’t get to tell me what to do, Rogers.” In a flash of movement, she grabbed her glass and downed the rest of the drink. The alcohol burned and she almost regretted rushing it, it seemed wrong to waste sipping whiskey like that. “Not on the battlefield and certainly not off it.”

Toni left and half the table held their heads in their hands. The only person who didn’t was busy using her metal hand to punch Stephanie in the shoulder. “Ow! What?”

Before Becca could explain just how far Steph had shoved her own foot in her mouth, Toni had made her way to the stage. She grabbed the microphone stand like she was at a rock concert instead of a bar where half the patrons were on their phones. She might be Toni Stark, but no one was here to watch anyone other their own friends sing.

The open drum beat kicks on and Toni pulled out her own phone. With a few taps to the translucent screen, the audio jumped up until the water in the glass Stephanie had gotten for herself started to shake. Each beat was met with a stomp from one of Toni’s ridiculous golden heels.

The guitar started and Natasha’s groan could just barely be heard over the music. Of everyone on the team, she knew how deep Toni’s AC/DC obsession ran. Yet, when the billionaire sang those first three words, it wasn’t just a fan singing lyrics in a bar. This song was hers, the original singer but a distant memory as she belted out the words. Every note was fire and anger and passion so raw that, even though they were fighting _again_ , Stephanie was transfixed. Maybe, because they were fighting, it was all the more powerful, drew her in all the more. After all, the two of them fought like magnets, clashing together and breaking everything in their path, including themselves. But their attraction, their pull towards each other, was something neither of them could fight.

Steph normally tried not to think about it too much, but the thought was unavoidable as Toni tugged at her shirt collar in time with the words of the song. She threw her head back, mic loose from the stand and clutched in her hand. The lines of her body and the impossible angles she created made Steph itch for her sketchbook.

Toni would be furious if she found out Stephanie wanted to draw her. But then again, she’d never asked before, so maybe…

The song ended just as explosively as it began. When Toni had grabbed a chair, no one was really sure, but she arched back like she was in _Flashdance_ and the room was a roar of noise. She stood, dropped the mic, and stalked off stage, stopping only at the bar before returning to the table.

The rest of the team was piling on the praise, though Claire couldn’t help a comment than there wasn’t any actual singing, so much as it was just shouting about being back in black. “And you’re not even wearing black, so like,” There was laughter and arms around shoulders, but Toni wasn’t paying attention to any of it. She was staring at Stephanie.

The solider kept her mouth shut, but her eyes were still wide. That seemed to be enough for Toni, who nodded and took her seat.

“Hey punk, you’re next.” Becca all but shoved Steph out of her chair, breaking her focus on Toni.

“I am? I didn’t sign up for anything yet.”

Becca laughed, “No, no you did not.” She pushed her friend towards the stage anyway, and Stephanie went. She took the mic with hesitance, squinting through the harsh neon lights to see her team at the back of the crowd, but everyone was just shapes in the darkness. The lyrics came on the small screen on the side of the stage and Stephanie froze.

“I don’t know this song.” She said into the mic, but that only earned distant cheers. Something pop came on and there were lyrics about hot and cold, and she was failing to find any sense of rhythm.

Her mortification only lasted the first verse, because as soon as the chorus started, she could hear her team singing along. Well, if screaming off key could be called singing. What they lacked in any sense of skill, they made up for with coordination and absolutely charisma. It could almost be called teamwork.

It wasn’t until the end of the song that Stephanie finally figured out how to keep up with the words on the screen, but the bar had turned its limited attention to the back booth anyway. The song ended with only her voice, as the team dissolved into laughter and the sound of glasses being knocked against each other in celebration.

“Goddamn brilliant!” She heard Toni say. She supposed, even if it was at her expense, she was happy to hear Toni laughing again.

There were some rapid footsteps but then Becca was on stage with her. “Sorry Stephie, I thought the prank could be funny, but when Toni suggested Katy Perry, I couldn’t stop myself. Everyone cool if she gets to choose the next song?” The bar gave a half hearted sound of agreement, attention already lost again. A songbook was tossed at her and she flipped through it for a moment before picking a number. Becca ruffled her hair before running back to the table.

The opening notes of the piano were unmistakable and the energy of the bar immediately went somber. “This is a weird choice.” Sam muttered, but judging by the way the room went silent, perhaps not a bad one. Toni paused when the song started, but turned away from the stage and back to her drink. The joke was over and she was determined to go back to being mad.

Until Stephanie opened her mouth. Her voice wasn’t that of a singer, absolutely lacked the range this song required, but every word, every syllable held emotion in it. The song was about loss, but she made it about longing. She turned every hallelujah into a new beginning, imbued the song with the hope that seemed to shine through everything she did. It was an apology, a love letter, a confession all rolled into four and a half minutes.

The last word was a broken whisper and the bar was silent for a long moment before a heavy applause broke through. In the dim light, Claire could just barely make out tears running down Toni’s face.

“You okay?”

The genius swallowed hard but nodded. She grabbed her drink and took a deep sip. When Steph got back to the table, she stood without wobbling.

“No wait, we can’t leave yet,” Sam said, “our room opens in five minutes and I was going to do Smash Mouth.”

“We’re not leaving,” Toni said.

“We’re not?” Steph’s eyes were wide again, tilting her head like a confused puppy at Toni. Briana narrowed her eyes but Toni just nodded at her, a silent confirmation. Any trace of tears was gone.

“Steph and I will be right back. Three minutes, tops.” With that, she grabbed Steph’s wrist and led her out of the bar. Just like before, that one point of contact was an overwhelming rush of sensation, but Tony didn’t let go until they were outside. The weather must have turned sometime after they’d gone in, since the cloudy sky and bloomed into a full downpour. The bar didn’t have any protection from the rain, so the two heroes ducked into a side alley.

“I’m sorry,” they spoke in unison, then fell into laughter.

“Okay,” Toni took the lead but quickly faltered, “today was stupid.”

“Yeah,” Stephanie agreed. There was an awkward silence, with just the rain keeping them company.

“I… was stupid.” Toni managed, “Running off without a plan, almost getting Nat killed – “

“She was fine.”

“I know. Wait, you knew? Then why were you all,” She moved her hands in a way that was supposed to mean something, but Steph couldn’t quite figure out the details.

“It’s not about telling you what to do,” She tried. When Toni didn’t stop her, she knew she was on the right track. “I know you know how to handle yourself. You’re great on the field and off. I just… worry about you.”

“Did you mean it?”

The non-sequitur caught Steph off guard. “Mean what?”

“The song. I’ve heard that sung a hundred different ways. It always meant mourning. It’d been an ending. You sang it like it was,” She stopped, breaking that intense eye contact to stare at something just to the left of Steph. Toni squeezed her eyes close for one infinite second before turning her focus back, unflinching from whatever emotion had nearly overwhelmed her. “Like it was the start of something.”

Stephanie Rogers was an artist, but she was no poet. She couldn’t explain, outside of that song, outside of realizing it tonight. It wasn’t about having a plan; it was about trying to keep up, trying to find some common ground. She never had any idea how, hopelessly drawn to a flame as bright as Toni. Stephanie could burn up for getting so close, but tonight she realized she would be okay with that.

“I’d like it to be.”

The force with which Toni crashed their mouths together pushed them out from under the overhang. Rain poured down around them, but just like the rest of the world, it seemed to vanish. Time sped up and slowed down in short bursts as Toni kissed her and it felt like an eternity until Stephanie figured out how to kiss back. Toni wasn’t just a flame; she was an inferno, and Steph gladly let herself get engulfed.

They found their way into the bar, led by an unamused hostess to the private room the team had been waiting for. They opened the door, hair soaked and lipstick smeared, and no one looked surprised.

“Finally,” Briana said. Becca slipped Natasha some number of bills in a mix of Russian and American currency.

But after that, no one said much about it. Toni had certainly been expecting more of a response, as she tried to tame her hair. She sat next to Sam on the long couch that lined the wall of the small room, and Steph slid in right next to her. Their thighs pressed together, and even through layers of denim, it was impossible not to notice the contact.

“Shots?” Claire asked, holding both Stephanie and Toni a glass. They looked at each other, in a way that someone on the outside would say was a conversation happening with just their eyes. It wasn’t a conversation, though, neither of them were that good with words. It was an exchange of something, an emotion, an acceptance. To be included in a plan, and to be free to run without one.

Toni took a glass first and Steph followed. She wouldn’t feel anything other than the burn of the liquor going down her through, but that wasn’t the point. The three glasses collided in the air, then a second later slammed down onto the table together. Sam was already belting out the opening of _All Star_ and the rest of the team quickly joined in.

They left the bar an hour later, everyone stumbling from inebriation or the strange intoxication of laughter. Toni put in a standing reservation for that very same room, third Friday of every month. Even if they had to cancel again, she wanted to hope they’d have another night like this.

Until Stephanie opened her mouth when they had made their way into Toni’s bed. Then she was certain there would be another night like this.

**Author's Note:**

> (I never wrote cheesy song-fics in the early 2000s, so let me have this)  
> Thanks for reading!


End file.
